How to Balance the Budget in 2 Years
Don't tell me it can't be done. We've run the numbers. It can.
Should the political will exist, Ottawa can eliminate its deficit in two years without raising taxes, or even draconian cuts for that matter. Still reductions will be required, to the tune bringing spending levels to $18 billion below 2010-11 levels by 2012-13. That would return program spending to levels seen between 2008-09 and 2009-10. Not radical, but very different from the current course of perpetual deficits and increasing government that we are charted on.
The CTF's Zero in Two: Deficit Action Plan details how this can be done while not raising taxes or rescinding scheduled future reductions:
- Eliminate corporate welfare, regional development agencies, bio-fuel subsidies, most arts and language subsidies and other select grants and contributions.
- Privatize Atomic Energy of Canada, Canada Post’s Purolator Courier and VIA Rail. Also, end taxpayer support for the CMHC. Also, end any financial support for Canada Post.
- Reduce most departmental budgets from 10-25% and freeze remaining budgets for two years.
- Reduce the Equalization Program by 10% annually over two years and assist recipient provinces in paying down respective debts in lieu of cash-transfers.
- Continue growth in Health and Social Transfers and National Defense spending at a reduced rate.
- Pass a Taxpayer Protection Act to ban future deficits and tax increases without an explicit mandate to do so given in an election or referendum.
- Pass a Debt Retirement Act with a schedule for making Canada a debt-free jurisdiction.
- Prevent a further EI payroll-tax hike by eliminating non-insurance based EI programs.
- Eliminate the Vote Tax – per vote subsidy.
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Comments
Why be so easy on the CBC?
I think that there's a typo on page 13. It should say "eliminate" for the CBC.
Don't forget the savings that
Don't forget the savings that can be had though reduced subsidies to Air Canada and the good old CBC
Well, let's see. The first
Well, let's see. The first item on your list. Hmm, I wonder what the lobbyists will have to say about that?
There is no political will in Canada. The only will is to take from the people.
Is Canada living beyond its means: YOU BET !!
Having grown up in Europe .. working in many places across the globe including the US, and now living in Canada for the last 50% (or 25 years) of my life I have come to appreciate both models of governments, pensions, taxes, wages etc. ..
Canada for the last few decades by and large has implemented a fair compromise between a "too socialistic plus too high taxes" Europe and a "too capitalistic plus too low taxes" US model !
However, as I look around here in Canada, talk to investors and fellow citizens, and read articles like the ones here on
a) vastly increased government payrolls,
b) more and more unwillingness of immigrants to integrate into Canadian values,
c) inappropriate and often costly demands by new immigrants,
d) falling social systems in Europe ,
e) human rights abuses and
f) lack of calls for rejection of extremism (like in the UK or Australia)
and elsewhere I AM GETTING CONCERNED, that Canada too will have problems like the US or Europe as none of the issues are being addressed in earnest here at home !
Specifically:
a) public servants make too much money and have way too generous indexed pensions
b) the deficit is growing as is the debt
c) too much free health care and not enough user-participation
d) a growing expectation of "the government will take of me" as baby boomers age
e) too much entitlement demands by immigrants, pensioners and even students
f) increased multi-culturism i.e. people of different faiths or ethnic origins living side by side increasingly isolated as opposed to in more harmony with shared core values or even language
g) lack of enforcement of white collar crimes
h) lack of freedom-of-speech due to increased potential for defamation law suits and human rights tribunals with quasi-judical powers
I think Canada needs to do more .. MUCH MORE .. to address these issues that we now see emerging in Europe or the US .. as otherwise a formerly healthy Canadian society will end up much like Europe with too much debt, a far lower living standard and far less freedoms !
Thomas Beyer - President - www.prestprop.com
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